Said It Here

Why are there unexplained bumps on the inside of my wheel rim?

Corrosion under the wheel surface, often called chrome rot, forms hidden bumps on the backside of the rim that can cause sudden tire leaks. Dealing with this unexpected damage leaves drivers stranded with flat tires when they lack the time, money, or towing options to easily fix it.

Overview
People affected3 accounts across 2 forums
Workarounds found7 items attempted
Community agreement81 total upvotes

What people tried

Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.

7 items+ Contribute

Found another way around this?

Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.

  1. 1
    asking a mechanic about chrome rot or sealing during tire changes
    Did this help you?
  2. 2
    Trying to rethread the damaged hub using an impact wrench or tap tool
    Did this help you?
  3. 3
    Leaving the car stranded on blocks to wait for an appropriate tow truck
    Did this help you?
  4. 4
    Considering replacing the wheel hub independently to save money
    Did this help you?
  5. 5
    Hitting the rim back into place with a hammer, mallet, or deadblow
    Did this help you?
  6. 6
    Having the bare rim checked on a balancer
    Did this help you?
  7. 7
    Replacing the steel wheel entirely
    Did this help you?
Tried another approach not listed above?+ Share your workaround ↑

In their words

Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.

r/MechanicAdvice1 person · September 2026

“Now my car is on bricks 15 mins away from my house and no one can tow it currently”source ↗

“I don’t have a lot of time and a lot of money to go to a shop and replace the hub.”source ↗

Turbulent-Cake-644 · r/MechanicAdvice · 76 upvotes
r/AskMechanics2 people · September 2026

“Took in my car for a oil change. They sent me a message if I want to replace the steel wheel because of a small warp should I be concerned”source ↗

CP9TOYTOY · r/AskMechanics · 4 upvotes

“I took the tire off today to replace my A/C clutch magnet and when I was putting the tire back on I noticed these bumps on the backside of the rim.”source ↗

“I can’t wrap my head around how they got there since they don’t look like say hitting a rock after driving on a flat or something like that, since they’re not jagged.”source ↗

armadilloweirdo · r/AskMechanics · 1 upvotes

Where this came up

r/AskMechanicsr/MechanicAdviceautomotive repairauto repaircar maintenancevehicle maintenancewheels and tires

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